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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. spring — the season
  3. last — final
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. stock — goods
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — completely
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. last — to go on
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stock — shares

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com